Cracks In The Heart
by EmrysTheMerlin
Summary: A strange cold fortress, a devious plot by a vengeful witch, an ancient spell, and a creeping darkness. All these things added up equal serious trouble for Merlin, Camelot's Court Sorcerer. Will he be able to fight off the darkness long enough to get Arthur out of danger, or will he fall to a darkness that sings to his very soul? Rating may change...
1. Whispers in the Shadows

Cracks in the Heart

**Authors Note: I've been sitting on this one a while. Don't get mad, there's a reason I've been holding it back. It's a bit more horror/psychological torture biased then I normally do and on paper it's not finished. I just have to do the last part. But I've decided that I will type and post what I've got and see what you think. Word of warning: I had a friend of mine read this and she was scared to go to sleep that night, don't say I never warned you. I own nothing, please review.**

1. Whispers in the Shadows

The castle was dark. Each shadow seemed to hide a different horror but I couldn't bring myself to fear them.

"Forebearnan!" I lifted the flame high in my hand, spreading the circle of light to aid in my search.

"Arthur? Lancelot? Gwaine?" I called into the shadows but heard nothing. I stepped cautiously forward, inching my way along the corridor. The torches had been lit a moment before but now were cold as if they had never been lit. I wished now that we were back in Camelot, not in this frozen castle near the town of Langsteid. But the disappearances had become far too many to ignore, too magical to ignore.

I just wished Arthur had agreed to stay behind. This place was unnerving. Portraits and tapestries lined every available space on the walls. As the flame flickered in my hand the pained or sewn images seemed to shift and stir. If the castle had been silent then maybe it wouldn't have been creepy. But it wasn't silent.

Whispers echoed down the hall and magic swirled audibly in the air. I called louder, refusing to panic entirely.

"Arthur!? Lancelot!? Gwaine!?" I held the flame a little higher. Where were they?

Suddenly a glint of gold caught my eye. I spun hard on my heel hard, hand not holding the fire ready to cast or defend against a spell.

But my hand fell back to my side as my jaw dropped. The thing that had caught my attention was a tapestry. Set back into an alcove it covered the whole wall, even draping onto the floor. It glinted gold in the light of my hand held flame. It was a tapestry of a place I knew all too well.

A lake surrounded by wildflowers, trees and mountains. The lake did not reflect its surroundings. Instead there was an arch in the middle of the lake, it was what glinted pure gold and was surrounded by budding rosebushes. Though the mountains were lit by a crescent moon, a sunrise was visible just above the arch. I breathed out, unaware I had been holding my breath.

"Avalon." I whispered, reaching out for the tapestry.

I jumped when someone put their hand on my shoulder. I spun quickly and just managed to stop the spell before it hit the knight behind me.

"Gwaine! Thank gods! Are you ok?" I asked starting to breathe again.

"Yeah. Merlin, mate, you look like you've seen a ghost." I forced a laugh.

"I'm fine. Where are the others?" Gwaine shrugged.

"I was hoping they were with you. What's that you've found?" I jumped and glanced back over my shoulder. The tapestry still glittered.

"Nothing. Let's go find the others." I said tearing my eyes away from the tapestry, worried about Arthur and Lancelot. Gwaine looked concerned but didn't ask. As we walked away I glanced back over my shoulder at the tapestry. It seemed to glow with power, trying to draw me back to it.

"Merlin?" I shook myself and followed Gwaine forcing a smile and taking the lead. I held the flame higher to help both of us look.

"Arthur?! Lancelot!?" I called out as we walked down the hall. Suddenly Gwaine grabbed me from behind, covering my mouth with one hand and pulling me into an alcove. Understanding I closed my hand around the flame extinguishing it. We both held still listening.

There! Footsteps! Eyes flashing gold I enhanced my hearing and Gwaine's.

"heard someone! It sounded like there was only one person." Was that Lancelot? Someone punched the wall near our alcove.

"Damn! I hope Gwaine found the idiot, I don't want him wandering around on his own." Gwaine's hand went lax and I dropped the spell. I stepped out of the alcove slowly, hands raised in a gesture of surrender. I knew what Arthur was like with sudden movements when worried.

I blinked at the sword that practically materialized at my throat. Excalibur, I stood frozen. This was the one weapon even I couldn't defend against. The blade thrummed with magic, a dragon's breath mixed with the essence of Avalon. Some of my own magic was present there as well, ensuring that only Arthur could wield it. I could see the magic moving along the blade, shimmering slightly in the darkness. Almost as soon as the blade was raised it was lowered.

"Merlin?" I rolled my eyes as they lit up gold, relighting my handheld flame.

"Noooo. I'm a figment of your imagination, you prat." I said sarcastically as Gwaine stepped out of the alcove, grinning.

"Idiot. Let's not get separated again." I glared at him as he glanced at Gwaine and Lancelot patted me on the shoulder.

"It wasn't my fault. Has anyone seen my bag? I seem to have lost it when I was _yanked_ in here." Lancelot held it out to me. I thanked him and glared at Arthur who looked slightly guilty. It wasn't my fault. I wasn't the one who had opened the door.


	2. How They Got There

**Authors Note: Bit of explanation here. This takes place after my story ****_Dances with Dragons. _****Merlin has been the Court Sorcerer for a while now. Arthur got Excalibur sometime before ****_Farewells_****. He doesn't always use it only when he knows magic is involved. This part is short. I STILL OWN NOTHING. PLEASE REVIEW!**

2. How They Got Inside

~Several hours earlier~

"Alright, let's go on in." Arthur sighed, tired of waiting on me to figure out what was going on. I glared at him and stepped in front of the only door we had found. It was plain wood with cast iron hinges and a matching handle. Altogether it was completely ordinary, then again to the untrained eye so was I.

"Arthur! We don't know what's in there. All we know is people go in and they don't come back out." He glared right back.

"We aren't likely to find them if we wait out here are we?" He sidestepped before I could argue and pulled on the door. That was when I felt it. Magic. On instinct I shoved Arthur back, only managing to get him back a few steps. But the effect was what I was aiming for, we had switched places.

The shadow that reached out of the broken empty fortress had been a physically painful thing. It burned cold as it wrapped swiftly around my waist. Arthur had grabbed my wrist to keep from falling. The shadow wound around me more and my eyes flashed gold forcing Arthur to let go. The shadow pulled hard and I was instantly engulfed in darkness.


	3. Breathing Brushstrokes

**Authors Note: I still own nothing! Please review! So back to the present, now we get actual plot! Yay!**

3. Breathing Brushstrokes 

"I'm not the one who opened that door, you clotpole! I told you not to. At least none of us are badly hurt." I was bruised around the middle right where my bag rested but other than that I was alright. A look of guilt flashed over Arthur's face. Not that he would apologize out loud. Instead he sheathed Excalibur and looked around.

"Have either of you seen anyone else?" We both shook our heads, but I was glad he had missed my comment about my injury. It didn't hurt that much, though it would in the morning, but we needed to get back to business. Arthur's eyebrows knit together.

"Neither have we. Something's not right here." I rolled my eyes again.

"Nooo, really? What tipped you off, the corporeal shadows? Or was it the overabundance of paintings and tapestries? Or maybe the constant whispering?" I was on edge, the tapestry kept creeping to the front of my mind.

"What whispering?" Lancelot asked. We all froze, barely breathing. The whispering grew louder. Each of the knight's eyes grew wider; they hadn't heard the whispering until now.

"What is that?" Gwaine asked and the whispering ceased almost instantly. I was so much more than unnerved by now.

"I don't know but I don't like it." I stated openly. The flame in my hand had grown a bit and was flickering nervously. Arthur grabbed a torch from the wall and lit it. I glared at him as he handed it off to Gwaine and lit a second one.

"At least you know you're good for something." Gwaine grinned. I would have answered him had something not grabbed my ankle and yanked. Surprised I fell headlong, dragged back by another shadow that seemed alive and burnt with cold. Arthur, Lancelot and Gwaine leapt forward but I was already acting.

"Lighote, spetra shadoxe fume!" I yelled shoving my hand into the shadow. My eyes gleamed gold and the shadow screamed.

Even Arthur clapped his hands to his ears to shut out the horrible otherworldly noise. It writhed away releasing my ankle, as it began to retreat the light shining from my hand became visible. It was bright gold and warm. I watched the shadow retreat and as I did I saw it.

Just before the shadow vanished a face roiled into view. Its lips moved silently but I understood.

_Help us. The shadows live, beware the dark. Help us. _Then the face and the shadow vanished. I sat on the floor for a moment, hand still glowing. Then Arthur pulled me up.

"Merlin are you alright?" He sounded worried. I nodded, still looking at my hand. I fisted it gathering the light into my palm like a liquid. I opened my fist revealing a large ball of light. I blinked and it split into four and each then flew off to the others, saving one for me. Lancelot raised an eyebrow.

"Just in case." I said not meaning to be so cryptic, Kilgaraha must be rubbing off on me. Arthur rolled his eyes. I ignored him and stepped up to examine one of the paintings. It was a relatively simple landscape. A farm in the middle of a prosperous summer, but something was wrong. My ball of golden light floated closer to the painting and I found the flaw in this seemingly perfect painting.

In the field at the forefront of the painting was a man. But he was frozen mid-scream the wheat tangling around him and seeming to pull him into the field.

"Don't touch the paintings! Or the tapestries!" I warned, realizing something else. The man in the painting was breathing.

** Authors Note: Merlin's spell means "Light, possessed shadow burn!" I made it up…**


	4. Death in the Weave

**Authors Note: I still own nothing. Scare factor is going up. I may change the rating. It will only be T in case you're wondering. PLEASE REVIEW!**

4. Death In The Weave

"What? They're just paintings." Gwaine looked bemused. I shook my head.

"No they aren't. There is some very dark magic going on here." I showed them the man in the painting. Gwaine swore loudly as Arthur examined the painting. Lancelot had paled slightly but stepped up next to me anyway.

"What do we do?" He asked after a moment's silence. I examined the painting closely. There was magic there but it wouldn't be powerful outside this place. In fact it wouldn't be able to exist outside this place.

"Well he's alive. It's almost like someone's keeping him here, and alive, for a purpose. I'll need time to figure out how to release him." Arthur had moved on to another painting. After a moment's search he turned to a tapestry. He cursed under his breath.

"They're all like that one. Every one of them has someone trapped in them." I moved down the hallway a bit. The most disturbing image waited for us there.

"No they don't." The knights followed me and each gasped at the sight before them. Halfway in a tapestry was a skeleton.

The left arm, right leg and part of the skull hung loose from the weave of the fabric but the rest was still just an image in thread.

"What in the seven hells happened to him?" Arthur whispered his hand on Excalibur's hilt. I shook my head.

"The tapestry is old, older than the rest. So are the bones, old I mean. See how thin the joints are? Some of the fingers are missing." I said forcing myself to face this from an analytical standpoint so I wouldn't panic. I floated my light closer to the left hand. Indeed several of the fingers were missing. Gwaine laughed a little.

"Court Sorcerer and still you have the knowledge of a physician." I rolled my eyes.

"I do spend a lot of my time with Giaus, and technically I did apprentice under him for seven and a half years." Gwaine nodded thoughtfully.

We all jumped when the skeleton shifted. They drew their swords and I raised my hand ready to attack. But it never attacked us. Instead I realized that it wasn't truly the skeleton that was moving at all, it was the tapestry.

It shifted as if stirred by a breeze. But there was no breeze. As it shifted so did the skeleton. Its head lolled as the skull emerged fully from the weave almost falling off the neck entirely. The torso followed but did not come fully out of the weave as it shifted from fabric to bone. Only the ribcage emerged fully from the fabric as we watched. The air was heavy with magic and dust.

But the feel of it was claustrophobic, pressing at my senses, choking the air with the foul acrid smell of dark magic. I coughed as the smell invaded my lungs, the others could feel the magic in the air but it wasn't as strong to them. I yanked off my neckerchief and used it to cover my nose and mouth as the smell grew worse.

The tapestry continued its morbid swaying until most of the left leg and part of the pelvic bone had been released from its deadly weave. Then with a visible plume of dust and dark magic it stilled once more.


	5. Die Well

**Authors Note: I still own nothing. PLEASE REVIEW!**

5. Die Well

Lancelot and Gwaine looked concerned as I coughed once more but Arthur was better at hiding it.

"Don't tell me you've caught a cold, you idiot." I rolled my eyes at him and shook my head, retying my neckerchief.

"No. Too much dark magic has that effect on me. It's rank." I wrinkled my nose at the smell lingering in the air. But I had figured something out.

"Lancelot, hand me your torch please." He did and after a moment I touched it to the tapestry. The dry weave caught the flame easily enough and soon it and the bones were a blaze. Yet the fire didn't spread to the paintings around it. We were silent for a moment in respect for the unknown victim of this travesty of magic.

"So what was that supposed to do?" Gwaine asked curiously as the fire died down.

"Prove a point. These paintings and tapestries are strange, but not just because of the magic they have. They can only trap one person and hold them there until they become like this poor man. But after that the magic starts to decay, that's when it releases the victim." Arthur paled slightly.

"So there's nothing we can do?" He sounded angry.

"Now I never said that. Every spell has a source. We have to find it and destroy it, well that's the easy way. There's another way, but it would take a huge amount of energy and magic and I'm not sure I could even do it. So we'll do it the first one." I nodded convinced of the truth behind my words. But as the fire died completely a shadow rose. It stood where the tapestry had been, watching us. I raised my hand and the shadow opened its mouth and shrieked. But I heard words under the scream.

_I am free, but you are not. As thanks for my freedom I give you one warning. Nothing here is what it seems. Beware when the lady begins to sing to sing._ As he finished his warning his form shifted from shadow to a translucent gold. The screaming ceased and he smiled. Then in a swirl of gold, he vanished.

"What. The. Hell." Arthur asked removing his hands from his ears.

"That was his soul." I marveled. Arthur still looked confused. I rolled my eyes.

"It's what makes us someone who they are. Without it they're just a shell. This is quite the work of magic. It removes the soul then traps the body. We need to put a stop to this now." I said darkly. The whispering turned to laughter. I stiffened.

The voice that dominated the whispers was dark and cold. We all knew that voice. Knuckles grew white on hilts and spell after spell flew through my mind.

"I'd love to see you try Merlin. Let's see what your magic can do, shall we?"

"Morgana. I've been wondering when you'd make your next move."

"How long?" The voice of my opposite echoed as the knights searched with their eyes.

"I'm afraid you'll have to ask whole question Morgana. Otherwise I don't know what you're asking." I stalled.

"Liar!" Her voice echoed again. "You've always been a liar!"

"Have I? Think about it. I have never lied to you Morgana! Neither did I lie to anyone else if I could help it."

"You could have helped me! You could have told me! I told you everything! I trusted you!"

"I did help you! I took you to the druids, but when I found out Uther thought you had been kidnapped I brought you back to Camelot to save you and them."

"You didn't trust me. You could have told me!"

"Ah, but could I have? You were a dear friend to me but you had already tried to kill the king. You were closer to him then anyone. I was scared, I will admit that. But I tried to help you. I kept your secret."

"You poisoned me!"

"I had no choice!" Silence fell, save for the constant whispering.

"You were the source of the spell. Morgouse knew that would happen if she made you the source of the spell, yet she did it anyway. I had to do something. If there had been any other way, anything I could have done differently I would have. I saved you seconds later by giving Morgouse the name of the poison I used."

"How long?" She asked again.

"Again, not understanding what you are asking!"

"How long have you had magic?! How long have you known about mine?"

"I…"

"Did you know before I told you!?"

"No. I knew you saw glimpses of the future in your dreams. But I knew nothing of your magic until you told me." Arthur had apparently had enough of watching me chat with his sisters disembodied voice.

"Enough of this Morgana! Merlin has nothing to do with this. Show yourself!" We could all tell she was sneering.

"But brother dear, Merlin has everything to do with this. He's the one caught up in the magic here. It's a shame really that you weren't the one it caught." Gwaine practically snarled, Lancelot watched me carefully.

"Where are you witch! I'll..." Arthur cut across him.

"You will lift whatever curse you have placed here or you will suffer the consequences." She laughed.

"This magic is none of mine. Though I did have to lure quite a few people here before you decided it was worth your while. No the magic of this place was laid down by and ancient priest of the old religion. It's a shame I won't get to kill you myself. Die well Merlin." Fear filled my heart but I refused to let it show.

"Not today Morgana." I whispered as I felt her presence receded.


	6. Holding Back the Blackness

**Authors Note: I still own nothing. I would like to thank one reviewer in particular for restoring my faith in myself. **Whatswiththemustache**, YOU ROCK! So I hope I am meeting up to the challenge of scaring you. We haven't even gotten to the scary bit yet. I hope you're enjoying it so far. Please review!**

6. Holding Back the Blackness

The knights all looked around, still on edge. Arthur spoke still scanning the corridor.

"Where is she Merlin?" I sighed heavily.

"She was never actually here. She knows what this place is; she'd never enter it herself." I said moving away from the blank expanse of wall where so recently the tapestry had hung.

"Come on we should try to find somewhere safe to plan. If there is such a thing here." I was being as cheerful as I could. The tapestry of Avalon kept drifting into my thoughts but I did my best to ignore it. Arthur grabbed my shoulder.

"What did she mean you're the one caught in the magic here?" I rolled my eyes making a show of being annoyed.

"Come on Arthur, you can't be that thick. Think for a minute. The shadows haven't gone after any of you. You followed me in here." I once more took the lead, walking down the corridor. I continued before Arthur could cut me off.

"All of the people who disappeared from Langsteid vanished one by one. This place is powerful sure, but it can only handle one at a time."

"Merlin, I… I'm…" I cut him off.

"Don't. It's not your fault. We'll figure something out." Through the windows we passed I could see that we were at the top of the fortress and the sun was beginning to set. I tried a few of the doors we came across. All were locked and I let them stay that way not really wanting to know what was inside. Finally we came to a staircase.

"Up or down?" Lancelot asked looking between me and Arthur.

"Down." I said before Arthur had a chance. I made to go first but Arthur grabbed my neckerchief.

"No. I'm going first this time." We walked in silence for a while. Gwaine was getting twitchy.

"So Merlin, you never said what happened after you got pulled inside this creepy place." I grinned at his description, then I frowned as I began to explain.

"Well after King Prat opened the door and I pushed him out of the way and got dragged inside everything was pitch black. It felt like there were people there but it was like I was blind." I wasn't ashamed to admit I had panicked a little.

"So obviously I was a little… unnerved. And as it tends to do when I am unnerved my magic lashed out. Then I was in a hallway, the one you found me in Gwaine. All the torches were lit, I did that when my magic lashed out, but it was freezing and the shadows were moving. So I tried to get my bearings but before I could there was this wind that blew through the hall and put out all the torches. So I lit a fire in my hand and started looking for you lot." I should tell them about the tapestry, but I didn't. Something inside whispered that I shouldn't.

"Then Gwaine found me and we found you lot. Here we are." The staircase ended in a giant room, a throne room reminiscent of that of the fisher king. I watched my step this time.

"We should stay here for the night. It looks relatively safe." I said lighting a fire in the large fireplace with a wave of my hand. There were tapestries and paintings here as well but it was the closest thing to a safe place we had until we could find the door. Arthur nodded and Lancelot knelt down with his pack taking out various supplies.

"We'll take shifts on watch. I'll take the first one. Merlin are you sure you're ok?" I rolled my eyes at him.

"I'm fine." He raised an eyebrow. "I'm fine you prat." I grinned and sat down net to Lancelot. I pulled my bedroll out of my bag and lay it out. I yawned widely as Gwaine laid his own roll out. I was asleep within minutes.

Arthur watched the rise and fall of Merlin's chest for a while. When he curled up on his side and shivered Arthur sighed.

"Idiot." He breathed and took off his cloak. He laid it over Merlin who curled up under it and fisted the fabric in one hand. He looked so young asleep like that. Gwaine smiled at them, watching Merlin closely.

"I'm glad we found him." Lancelot spoke voicing what they were all thinking. Arthur nodded, he would never tell Merlin but he had been terrified when Merlin had been taken.


	7. Fear for a Friend

**Authors Note: I still own nothing! Now for the knights view of what happened! Please review.**

7. Fear for a Friend

~Earlier that day~

Arthur was about to protest that he could handle whatever this place threw at him when Merlin shoved him back away from the door. He was about to yell at him when the shadow had reached out and wrapped around his waist. Arthur grabbed his wrist. He had looked Arthur in the eyes and Arthur had seen fear and conviction there.

Then Merlin's eyes had flashed gold and Arthur was forced to let go. He tried to catch Merlin but the shadow had been faster. The last view the king had of his friend was his arm reaching desperately out of the shadow. Then the door tried to slam shut once more.

This time Arthur was faster, desperation and fear eating him inside. He just caught the door before it closed and yanked it open again. Gwaine managed to get in first.

"Merlin!?" Arthur and Lancelot followed him, hoping he had found him. No such luck. The hallway was dark empty and cold, then Arthur spotted it. On the floor near the end of the hall was a bag. Made of brown rough material he recognized it immediately. It was Merlin's. He cursed and picked it up. Gwaine and Lancelot swore in unison.

"Merlin's." Gwaine confirmed snatching it from Arthur. He opened it and looked inside.

"Everything's still here. The straps not even broken. Someone took this from him." Gwaine said getting angrier as he examined the bag.

"Shit!" He swore under his breath.

"What?" Lancelot was jumpy. Gwaine held up the bag. There was a burn mark that was about two fingers wide and ran the length of the back of the bag. But as Arthur was about to speak a bloodcurdling yell sounded, ringing through the halls. Power flowed in the voice and they all recognized it. It was followed by a wave of shadows. Seconds later a wave of golden shimmering warm air washed over them. It lit every torch it touched and Arthur felt momentarily safe.

But then a wave of cold had swept down the hall and extinguished all light. He had felt someone grab his arm and heard a masculine yell. Then the light reappeared, but only from the windows. Arthur found himself and Lancelot somewhere else completely. Gwaine had been missing.

~Back to the present~

Merlin shifted under his cloak. His eyes wandered under closed lids searching for something. He muttered in his sleep but Arthur couldn't make out the words. The shadows shifted slowly almost languidly out toward him. Arthur kicked Lancelot in the side, not hard, and he startled awake. Gwaine grunted pulling his sword and rolling to his feel. Merlin shifted and sat up quickly. He looked deathly afraid. But there was something very wrong with his eyes.


	8. Lost In The Shadows

**Authors Note: Now the scary fun may begin. J Anyway… I own nothing, please review!**

8. Lost to the Shadows

I woke up to the sound of whispering, but it was becoming clearer. I could almost make out words now. One voice was almost crystal clear. A woman singing. I remembered the warning the freed soul had given me.

_Beware when the lady begins to sing._

My breath caught in my throat. But not from fear, though it was trying to grab hold of my mind and shake some sense into me. I didn't listen. I knew that voice; it was one of the most beautiful voices I had ever heard.

"Freya." I breathed. The singing grew louder. I stumbled to my feet and began walking forward. I thought I heard someone call my name but I heard nothing but her song. Then I saw her. Her face shimmered in the shadows that surrounded the room. She had tears running down her face. I stumbled forward whispering her name again. Just before I could reach the shadows someone grabbed my arm.

"No. No! Let me go! Freya!" I struggled against the hand holding my arm. I almost got loose but then someone grabbed my other arm. The grip was firm but not painful. But it was keeping me away from Freya. She sounded like she was crying. I fought harder against my captor. I had to help her; I had already failed her once.

Something in the back of my mind was screaming at me, telling me that Freya wasn't here. But I didn't listen. People were talking around me, arguing in fact, but I couldn't make out what they were saying over Freya's tearful song. I fought desperately against the firm grip that held my arms behind me but I wasn't strong enough to break loose. Then I remembered my magic.

"Swepnus foe…" That was as far as I got before a sharp pain connected with the side of my head. Everything swam for a moment and I thought I saw Arthur. Then I slumped against my captor as the darkness closed over me like a wave.

Arthur felt nothing but horror when he had looked into Merlin's eyes. They had been glazed over with a film of black. The blue of his eyes had been almost hidden entirely. He had stumbled to his feet and murmured a word, a word that made Arthur's heart drop.

"Freya." It had been a little over three months since Arthur had learned the truth about his best friend's true love.

"Merlin?" Arthur called to him. Nothing, no response whatsoever. His darkened eyes searched almost blindly in the shadows. Then a smile that looked very nearly sinister crossed his face. Arthur's eyes raked the shadows but saw nothing. Merlin mumbled his true loves name again and stumbled forward, toward the shadows. Lancelot was closest and caught him by one arm.

"No! No, let me go! Freya!" He sounded desperate, almost heartbroken. Lancelot almost lost his hold on Merlin, not expecting him to fight that hard. He just managed to catch his other arm. He struggled harder, desperate to get away. Arthur turned to Gwaine.

"We need to calm him down Gwaine." He shook his head watching as Lancelot fought to restrain their friend.

"It's Merlin; I can't just knock him about the head!" Then Merlin stiffened in Lancelot's grip.

"Swepnus foe…" Arthur drew Excalibur the instant the first syllable of the spell was out of his mouth. But instead of doing what his father would have done and executing him on the spot Arthur brought the pummel of his sword to the side of Merlin's head. He had to do it. Merlin wasn't in his right mind. He was a danger to himself and everyone around him.

But that thought didn't stop the crippling guilt that hit him as his sword connected with his best friend's ruffled black hair and his darkened eyes fluttered shut. A second before he slumped against Lancelot Arthur thought he saw his eyes clear and focus on him, confusion and pain written in their depths. But he dismissed it as wishful thinking as Merlin slumped against Lancelot and the shadows roiled.

Their whispers turned to cries of frustration and hisses of anger. Arthur swung his blade expertly stepping between his friends and the shadows.

"No. You can't have him." He whispered and spun his blade again. The shadows retreated slightly and Arthur stepped forward, daring them to test his sword. They hissed and retreated back into the true shadows that the fire gave off.

"Gwaine, tie him up." If looks could kill Arthur would have dropped dead instantly under the glare Gwaine shot at him.

"Why? Why would I do that? So you can hit him again when he wakes up!?" Gwaine was shouting at him now. Lancelot stepped in, laying Merlin down on his bed roll.

"Think about it Gwaine! You saw Merlin's eyes. He's under the spell of this place." When Gwaine looked unconvinced Lancelot looked up at him.

"Would the Merlin we know ever use magic against us?" Gwaine shook his head looking defeated. Stoically he pulled a length of rope out of his pack and began tying Merlin's hands behind his back. Then he tied Merlin's ankles together over his boots. Arthur and Lancelot ignored the tears that streamed down their friends face. They all knew that Gwaine was closer to Merlin then to any of the knights. Lancelot came over and nudged Gwaine's hands aside as he struggled with the final knot.

"Here, I'll do that. You check and make sure the prat didn't hurt him too bad." Arthur was angry, guilt still burning in his core.

"I was doing it for his own good. I wasn't going to hurt him, I didn't have a choice." Gwaine began to examine Merlin's head.

"Just a bump on the head. He'll be fine." Gwaine stated as Merlin twitched away from his hand. He groaned slightly and Arthur knew he would have a headache when he woke. He wouldn't be out for long.

Merlin's eyes searched blindly beneath their closed lids. He moaned, not in pain but in fear. Arthur kept Excalibur out in his hand.


	9. Ties Once Torn

**Authors Note: I still own nothing!**

9. Ties Once Torn

I groaned, head aching. I tried to move but my hands were tied behind me. My ankles were tied together and my left arm was going numb from where I had been laying on it. I groaned again and a shadowy figure swam into view above me.

"Let me go please. She needs me." My voice was horse and pleading. The figures mouth moved but I couldn't hear any words. The singing was starting again, she was sobbing now.

"Please! I've already failed her once! She needs me!" The figure had yet to come into focus but a second now joined it. I felt the tears rolling down my face.

Not ten minutes later Merlin groaned and opened his eyes. Any hope Arthur had held that this spell could be broken by a knock to the head was shattered by the shadows that clouded Merlin's eyes. He shifted, wriggling his fingers and shifting in his bonds. Arthur leaned over him, checking his head. He jumped in surprise when Merlin spoke.

"Let me go. Please. She needs me." His voice barely sounded like it belonged to him. It had a metallic echo to it, yet it was pleading and raw with emotion.

"It's not her Merlin. She's…" But Merlin cut him off not seeming to hear him.

"Please! I've already failed her once. She needs me!" The metallic edge grew even though Merlin's voice was choked with tears. Gwaine leaned over him next to Arthur.

"I don't think he can hear us. What do we do?" Arthur shook his head. He had no idea what to do. Merlin was the one who knew how to deal with magic. He was the one who fought with the shadows that Arthur didn't understand.

But looking into Merlin's eyes he saw the shadows Merlin always protected him from. It was his turn to save Merlin, and he had no idea how to do it. Lancelot stepped up to them.

"Arthur we need to think. What did Merlin say before?" Arthur thought hard, trying to ignore Merlin who was sobbing on the bedroll behind him fighting his bonds.

"He said we needed to find the source of the spell and destroy it. But how do we find it?" Arthur saw a glint out of the corner of his eye and ducked just in time to avoid the bedroll being hurled at him. Lancelot and Gwaine were caught off guard and knocked backward. Merlin stood before Arthur, hands still tied behind him. He had somehow managed to wiggle out of his boots ropes and all. Beneath the black sheen that clouded his entire eye his irises seemed to be fighting a battle of color.

Gold fought against black, gleaming through the fog that fought to swallow all Arthur knew off his friend. Blue seemed to fight the gold as fear swirled beneath the black. Suddenly half a dozen voices spoke at once from the shadows.

"Young king, the shadows are fighting for control of him. The light within him is strong, but the shadow is working its way into the cracks of his heart. You must hurry before he breaks." Arthur was panicking.

"What do I do!?" The voices answered him, ringing out together.

"You must break the hold he has over him. Sever the threads that seek to bind his soul. Only you can do this. Break his hold!" Arthur had no idea what they were trying to tell him but a metallic voice caught his attention before he could think.

"Slepthe." The voice should have been Merlin's but it was wrong. The metallic tang was inhuman and grated on Arthur's ears. There was a tearing sound and the ropes around Merlin's wrists fell away.

The battle in Merlin's eyes was all but won. Yet neither gold nor blue reigned there, black filled the whites of his eyes his once crystal blue irises darkened to near invisibility against his dilated pupils. His face wore almost no expression at all.

"Merlin don't do this. I don't want to hurt you." Arthur shifted on his feet. He could take Merlin under normal circumstances, mostly because he knew Merlin would never use magic to hurt him. But these were far from normal circumstances.

"She needs me. I can't fail her again. I won't fail her again." Merlin's voice was only an echo under the metal taint of the shadows. Merlin flexed his fingers. Arthur didn't want to fight him but it seemed he would have no choice soon. Then Merlin did the unexpected. He turned on his heal and ran back the way they had come. Momentarily stunned Gwaine managed to get past Arthur. He had not drawn his sword but he was running as if the bar keep was after him.

Arthur and Lancelot took off after them. The shadows roiled trying to make them stumble, but something stopped them. Lancelot realized it first.

"The lights, the one's Merlin made they're still here! They're holding off the shadows!" He was right. The balls of light Merlin had conjured fought the shadows back, burning them where they touched. Finally they caught up to their clumsy yet light footed friend. Arthur's heart jumped into his throat.

Merlin was standing before a tapestry depicting a lake surrounded by mountains and flowers, but the lake did not reflect the scene around it. This coupled with Merlin's near breathless '_Freya.'_ confirmed it for what it was, The Lake of Avalon.

"Merlin! No!" Gwaine called out as Merlin, eyes swallowed in darkness, reached out for the tapestry. Gwaine ran forward and bounced off a shield. Gold with a black tint, it was obvious who had cast it. Arthur's grip tightened on Excalibur.

"Move Gwaine!" Gwaine complied without question. Arthur had no idea if it would work but he sliced down at the shield. It cut like freshly baked bread. Merlin flinched. The three champions of Camelot rushed forward and Gwaine and Lancelot both grabbed one of Merlin's arms. He shrieked, a sound he could never have made under normal circumstances.

"No! No! She needs me! Let go!" The knights wouldn't be able to hold him for long and he would soon reach his own destruction. But worse, if that were possible, the tapestry threads seemed to be unweaving, reaching out for the restrained warlock. He was practically exuding shadows now and the knights had almost lost their grip on him. Arthur had to act now. Then he remembered the words of the shadows.

'_Sever the threads that seek to bind his soul.'_ He spun Excalibur in his hand and sliced the tapestry in two with one expert stroke. The instant the last thread was severed Merlin went rigid, eyes and mouth open in a silent scream. The color faded from the tapestry and shadows poured out of Merlin's eyes and mouth. They roiled around him and the knights fought to maintain their hold on their friend.

'_Let go!'_ His knights, believing that it had been his order not the shadows, complied. The shadow snaked and seethed and smoked around Merlin. An eternity seemed to pass before Merlin's eyes snapped shut and his jaw closed with an audible click. The shadows swirled around his still rigid upright form. On instinct Arthur lunged forward and sliced up, cutting the shadow's seemingly endless length.

A scream pierced the air and Merlin's eyes snapped open, once more pitch black. For a moment Arthur feared he had done the wrong thing, that he had caused his friend to be lost to the shadows. Then Merlin's eyes changed from pitch black to pure gold so fast Arthur almost blinked and missed it. A wave of pure energy shot from his friend and the severed tapestry. It was more powerful than anything Arthur had ever felt.

Then Merlin's eyes fluttered twice and he fell forward, unconscious. Arthur caught him and handed him to Lancelot as the sound of ripping fabric and snapping wood sounded from every side.


	10. The Vale FINAL PART

**Authors Note: Ok Final Part. I still own nothing.**

10. The Vale

The portraits and tapestries were moving again, but this time they were all doing the same thing. Each was expelling its captive onto the stone floor. A shout of rage sounded as the shadows vanished almost entirely. The few remaining shadows solidified into a male figure. He was tall and muscular even though most of him was hidden under a set of black robes. His face was hidden by the shadow his hood cast but his eyes glinted like almond shaped shards of obsidian.

"Who dares to deny me my prey!?" Then his black eyes lighted on Merlin, looking right past Arthur as if the King wasn't even there. Already on edge Arthur lunged. Slicing upward he cut a long gash along the sorcerer's torso. He did not bleed, he laughed.

"Someone very special was caught up in my trap I see. Emrys." Arthur looked confused from the man to Merlin. The man smiled. Then Arthur remembered, the druids called Merlin that. Only a few weeks ago Merlin had come clean about that particular secret, though Arthur suspected that if they hadn't been in a druid camp at the time Merlin would have held his silence.

"I never stood a chance against such raw power. Though I do wish to have it still." The man sneered as Arthur raised Excalibur again.

"Don't get cocky little king. I am still Lord here."

"Who are you?" Arthur snarled, the sneer on the other man's face grew.

"I am the last of my kind. I am, or rather I was, a priest of the old religion. Vaelus is what they used to call me. I suppose you don't know what that means in the language of the old religion, do you?" Arthur remained silent but a voice echoed around him.

"It means vale." Merlin! But Arthur glanced over his shoulder and saw him, still unresponsive in Lancelot's arms. Lancelot shook his head looking confused.

"As in the vale between the worlds. You tore a hole in the world long ago and it consumed you. Your last act was of desperation. You cursed this place, so that each person who entered would be fed to the crack you opened. Fed to the vale. Well you've picked the wrong person as your would be victim." The wave of power shot back toward them, enveloping all five of them.

It should have been suffocating, should have been deadly to all of them but it wasn't. Arthur and the knights simply felt a warmth wrap around them as they watched Vaelus struggle to breathe. Soon he was breathing in gold. Suddenly Arthur understood. The gold that surrounded them was Merlin, his magic, his soul. It overwhelmed Vaelus, who went down with a scream.

He faded from black into a soft silver. Only then did the light recede back into Merlin. It seemed to take even longer than it had for the shadow to leave him. When finally all the light had sunk into Merlin's skin he took a deep breath. Then his eyes flickered open, once more crystal blue.

I woke up in a completely different place then I remembered being knocked out in. I remembered very little of what happened since then. I blinked up at Arthur.

"What happened?" My head was pounding and I could feel the exhaustion that came from the overuse of magic creeping up on me.

"You have freed us all Emrys." I remembered Vaelus, who now stood just beyond Arthur glowing a soft silver.

"You truly are a merciful soul. Thank you." His soul had been trapped here too, stuck by the black curse he had been tainted with.

"Not a problem." I grinned as he vanished and the people newly freed from the curse began to mill about all seeming rather confused. Arthur knelt down in front of me.

"You idiot. How are you feeling?" I frowned at him.

"Tired you prat. What happened?" Arthur sighed.

"You broke the spell. I've never seen you do something that, big before. Powerful I mean." I chuckled.

"And I doubt you'll see it again anytime soon. Using that much power is dangerous. I doubt I could have done that if it hadn't been life and death." Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Knowing you you'll find some way to do it again before the year is out." Lancelot and Gwaine hauled me to my feel and I felt cold stones under them.

"Where are my shoes?" I asked not remembering having lost them. Arthur shook his head as he began to lead the crowd of people out of the castle. It took several hours to get everyone out and there were many thanks and several tears from the captives. They left quickly, back to their homes and families. We too mounted our horses and began the day long journey back to Camelot.

Arthur glanced over his shoulder as the sun reached its highest point in the sky. Lancelot and Gwaine were alert and on guard but Merlin was slowly leaning to one side eyes drooping with exhaustion. Arthur raised his hand calling for a halt.

"We'll break here for a few hours get a bit of rest. We should make Camelot by nightfall."

The sun had set several hours ago but Gwen couldn't sleep. She paced her and Arthur's shared room worrying. Arthur and the others should be back by now. Should have been back that afternoon. But they were not. She glanced out her window again and felt relief flood through her as four horses, three ridden by figures in shining armor, trotted up to the courtyard. She raced down to the courtyard and in a very un-royal show of emotion flung her arms around Arthur almost knocking him clean off his feet.

"I'm so glad you're all right! You should have been back hours ago! What happened?" Merlin shared a glance with the others in the group and shrugged as Arthur replied.

"Not much. But I'm happy to say that no one will ever have to worry about that particular castle again." Gwaine laughed and threw one arm around Lancelot's shoulder and the other around Merlin's.

"Come on you two. Princess has his hands full and I need a drink." They laughed at Arthur and Merlin called over his shoulder as he was led away.

"By the way, thanks for saving me for once Arthur." I grinned as Gwen began to shower her husband with questions. There was a force even I couldn't save Arthur from.


End file.
